THE PHILIPPINE CENTER FOR INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISM (PCIJ) raked in a slew of awards during the National Statistics Month (NSM) Media Awards at the Century Park Sheraton on Monday, October 1.

The awards, spearheaded by the National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB) in coordination with a number of government and private partners, recognize the work done by media organizations in the world of data and statistics.

During the 4th NSM Media Awards, the judges recognized four staffmembers and a fellow of the PCIJ, as well as other print and broadcast journalists for their role in “promoting and communicating statistics and their importance in decision-making.”

PCIJ Executive Director Malou Mangahas was named the NSM Media Awardee for the online investigative category for her story Pigging out on Pork: PDAF Racket Rocks Daang Matuwid, published by the PCIJ in July this year. The story explains how politicians have manipulated the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) or the pork barrel system so that it can be used and abused to ensure the dependence of the public on political patrons.

The NSM Board of Judges, led by University of the Philippines Economics Professor Solita Monsod, cited Mangahas for the “relevant, accurate, effective, and professional handling of statistical information.” In the 3rd NSM Media Awards last year, Mangahas was cited for her outstanding work in both the print and television categories.

The Board of Judges also recognized the work of PCIJ Training Director Che delos Reyes, PCIJ Research Director Karol Ilagan and PCIJ researcher Rowena Caronan, and PCIJ fellow Roel Landingin.

The four were given plaques of appreciation for their contributions in making the disclosure, use, interpretation, and communication of statistics key in the decision-making process. The four PCIJ writers were part of the PCIJ team that produced the PDAF series that ran on the PCIJ website beginning July 17 this year.

Government celebrates National Statistics Month every year in order to foster the appreciation and use of government data by the public, the media, and by government officials. The NSM steering committee is composed of a wide array of government and nongovernment institutions such as the NSCB, the Department of Labor, the Bureau of Labor and Employment Statistics, the Bangko Sentral, The Department of Budget and Management, the National Economic and Development Authority, the National Statistics Office, the Philippine Statistical Association, the Makati Business Club, the Employers’ Confederation of the Philippines, and the Federation of Philippine Industries.